The Mistake
by Metal-Blondie
Summary: One night I did something very stupid with one of my teammates. Something very, very stupid, that we promised each other never to talk about. But unfortunately promises aren't always that easy to keep; for example when your life gets screwed over. NejiTen
1. Prologue

**Okay guys… I'm sorry, but I'll have to break my ideal of not starting another story while still writing one. I just **_**have **_**to publish this one now, since I'm kinda stuck in one place with the other one for the moment, and I just kinda like this one. ;D Please don't be too mad at me, and I hope you'll enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the songs, book, movies etc that I might mention.**

Prologue: How it all started

Hiya there! My name's Tenten. Just Tenten, no last name. I'm pretty much your average girl… if you don't count the violent temper, obsessions with sharp, perilous items and the fact that I'm a ninja from Konohagakure, of course. I've got brown hair (always worn in two buns on my head), brown eyes (that tend to oddly enough get a reddish tint when I'm mad) and an athletic body (that some males seem to find quite interesting at times… Of course, ever since I beat up that one guy, they've left me alone).  
In fight, I'm quite known for keeping my cool and considering all possibilities before I make any decisions – this might be hard to believe, considering my temper, but it's true. I am – no way around it – quite a good fighter, and I'm quite intelligent, too.

Despite all this, though, a few years back, when I was eighteen, I did something very, very stupid. Although the fault wasn't entirely mine; my teammate had his part in it, too. But naturally I was the one suffering the consequences.

Not that he wasn't _trying_ to help me out. He just wasn't too good at it.

Yeah, bet you're interested, huh? Well, alright. I'll tell you.

_**XxXxX**_

It all started one rainy, dark autumn evening in Suna. I, Lee, Neji and Gai-sensei – my teammates, in case you're wondering – had been on a long and hard mission in some other village I haven't bothered to remember the name of, and were now heading home. Suna was on the way, and we'd decided to spend the night there.

So, Lee, Neji and I were standing in the rain, freezing, while Gai-sensei was somewhere trying to find a hotel or an inn or _something _where we could get a bed, a bathroom and food.

After we'd waited for a while he came prancing through the rain, a huge grin on his face. As usual.

"Listen up, my youthful students!" he said when he came to us. "We are staying at a five star hotel tonight for free, thanks to our old friend Gaara-kun!"

"That is truly amazing, Gai-sensei!" Lee exclaimed with gleaming eyes and just as huge a grin as the sensei wore. "We have to thank Gaara-kun as soon as possible!"

"Yes, Lee, we do!" Gai agreed. "Although he is now working and we wouldn't want to disturb him, now would we?"

"No, Gai-sensei!"

"Yes, yes, the both of you!" I said impatiently. "Now where's that damn hotel? I'm fucking freezing, here!"

"Tenten, that kind of language is not attractive for a young woman to use!" Lee scolded, twirling around and pointing at me accusingly. I gave him a glare that could rival Neji's.

"Because heaven forbid I should ever be unattractive", I said, boring my narrowed eyes into his own bug-like ones.

I could tell Neji rolled his eyes.

"Calm down, Tenten", he said sternly. "Gai-sensei, which way is the hotel?"

"This way, Neji!" Gai-sensei announced and turned around, marching back toward where he came from. We followed him, Lee energetically, Neji calmly and I irritably.

Lee and Gai – being their hyper selves – were running all the way to the hotel, while Neji and I loomed after, and by the time the two of us arrived, the two of them had already checked in and gotten the keys. They were now bouncingly waiting for us in the giant lobby, gaining odd looks from the passer byers.

"Okay, give me my key so I get to take a shower and go to sleep", I said, holding out a hand to them, palm facing the ceiling.

"Of course!" Lee laid a key in my palm, and I glanced at it.

"564", I announced. "What numbers have the rest of you got?"

"685!" Lee replied instantly, not even glancing at his key. I nodded and looked at Gai expectantly.

"I'm afraid we could only get two rooms, Tenten", he told me. "The hotel's quite crowded right now, so we'll only have to share."

I blinked.

"So, since the two of you didn't show up fast enough, Lee and I decided to share one room, and let the two of you share another one!"

I blinked once again before my eyes widened. "Wh-what? B-but… I can't share a room with Neji!" Gai looked at me, surprised.

"Why not?" he asked, apparently confused.

"B-because! H-he's a guy and I'm a g-girl!"

I was trying hard to fight the blush that threatened to appear on my cheeks. Keyword: trying.

My face became hot, and – being confirmed by myself as I glanced in the mirror behind Gai and Lee – very red.

I couldn't deny the fact that I had had some sorts of… feelings for Neji lately. I had become embarrassingly aware of the well developed muscles of his torso – the bastard had made a habit of taking his shirt off whenever he felt warm during training – and his handsome face that was framed by that long, beautiful hair…

Of course, I told myself that that was all just hormones. After all, I was a young woman. It could only be expected.

But still, the thought of sharing a bedroom with him… It wasn't nice.  
Or as a matter of fact, it was _very _nice, which was exactly the problem.

Lee gave me a confused look, but Gai just smiled slightly and sighed. Thankfully I couldn't see Neji's expression.

"Tenten, you and Neji have known each other since the Academy days", he said. "There is absolutely nothing to worry about!"

I kept silent, not meeting anyone's eyes. This was all very embarrassing, to say the least.

"Now, Lee and I will go to our room to do some training! We'll meet in the restaurant in an hour!" With that Gai and Lee disappeared.

I bit my lip and looked at the floor, avoiding looking at Neji.

"Well?" he said after a moment. "What are you just standing there for? Let's go." Then he walked past me and headed for the large staircase at the end of the hall.

I followed him, still blushing slightly.

We walked in silence – nothing out of the ordinary there – and soon made it to our room.

"I'm calling the top-bunk!" I informed Neji while sticking the card into the… card-hole?

"No you aren't", he replied coolly. I glared at him.

"It's not like you care where you sleep anyway!" I said, annoyed.

"True", he said, shrugging, as he passed me and entered the room. "But it's still fun to annoy you."

I punched him in the back, pouting, as I followed him.

The room was really nice. It was big, and had nice, light golden walls, a wall completely made of glass that led to a large balcony and gave you a view of the beautiful nightly city, it had an expensive flat-screen TV, a nice, big, comfy-looking double bed, a door that probably led to a fancy bathro-

Wait.

Rewind.

…

…

_Double bed?_

"Tenten?" Neji asked, glancing at me with a raised eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

"Wh-wh-wh-what's wrong?" I repeated, turning my face to him, my eyes wide and horrified. "What's wrong? Well, I'll tell you what's fucking wrong! That's fucking wrong!" I swung my arm dramatically in the direction of the bed and pointed at it.

Neji looked at the bed, then at me, than back at the bed, than again at me, then once more at the bed, and then at me again.

"Oh, c'mon, Tenten", he said, sounding annoyed. "Don't make this such a big deal."

"How could I not?"

"So, we'll have to share a bed? What about it?" He dumped his bag on the floor and turned back to me, arms crossed and an eyebrow raised.

I glared at him. "Maybe it's not a big deal to you", I said, "but it is to me!"

"Why is it a big deal to you if it isn't to me?"

"There's a difference!"

"How so?"

"Well… You're a guy! It's worse for a girl you know."

He rolled his eyes. "Is this all because you're attracted to me?"

I stood there with a blank expression for about five minutes before my brain caught up with his words. And so did my cheeks, by the way.

"I-I-I-I-I…!" I stuttered out. "I am NOT-"

"Please, Tenten", he said, smirking at me. "It's pretty obvious, you know. And kind of cute, actually."

I was unable to make a sound, and my face was burning. This was like my worst nightmare come true!

He rolled his eyes again, and his smirk widened as he looked at me. "Oh, it's not that big a deal", he said. "It's not like you're in love with me or anything. Just hormones. Right?"

I glared at him.

"You're so full of yourself", I said angrily, pushing past him and walking into the bathroom, carrying my bag with me.

I could hear him snickering when I closed the door behind me.

_**XxXxX**_

We met the two green morons down by the restaurant at the agreed time. I hadn't talked to Neji since our discussion, and he hadn't said anything either, just glanced at me with an amused expression a few times.

"Hello, Neji-kun, Tenten!" Lee called cheerfully at us when he spotted us. I huffed in reply and walked past them into the restaurant without a word.

"…Is there something bothering Tenten?" I heard Gai ask Neji.

"She's just sulking", the longhaired bastard replied. Ooh, he thought he was _so_ friggin' cool, didn't he? Well know what? He wasn't!

The three of them followed me, and we were showed to a table by a window. I and Neji both ate in silence while our teammates planned their nightly training-session. I had _no idea_ how they still could have the energy to do stuff like that, but I guess they were just inhuman. That'd explain a lot…

I myself was planning to sit down here for a while and take a few glasses while I waited for Neji getting ready for bed. It would so much less embarrassing if he was already asleep when I crawled down next to him.

…Why did the thought of 'crawling down the next to him' sound that inviting? I cursed in my mind.

"Well, goodbye!" Gai told us in the lobby after we'd finished our dinner. "Lee and I will go now! We'll see you tomorrow!"

Neji gave a short nod, and I mumbled something incoherent in response. I wasn't anywhere near over my bad mood yet.

Once the two had left, I turned to Neji. "I'm going to the bar to take a drink or two", I told him. "Goodnight." With that I turned away and started walking away, just to soon notice that Neji was walking right next to me.

"I'll join you", he explained when I looked confused and annoyed.

I groaned, but I knew there was no way to stop him. I would _really _have wanted to be alone right now, but I guess there was no way I could get even such a little thing.

We sat down by the bar and ordered some drinks. We were silent for a while, but then Neji suddenly started talking.

"How are you feeling? That guy from earlier was pretty bad."

I glanced at him, before I replied after a moment. "I'm fine. He wasn't really that strong. Just so freaking weird."

"Yeah, his attacks sure were pretty interesting", Neji agreed, sipping his drink. "Actually, they reminded me slightly of…"

Let's just say, that when Neji decides he wants to talk, he's _good _at it. I was soon more or less forced into a discussion about everything and anything.

We had a really good time, to be honest, and you know what? Sometimes Neji's real fun. I was laughing soon enough, and it wasn't all due to the fact that I got a little more to drink than necessary.

"You're good a holding you liquor", I commented after almost two hours.

He smirked. "I'm shinobi. I kind of have to be."

I gave him a warm smile for some reason I couldn't quite put my finger on. I just felt like it.

"You know, Tenten", he said after a short moment. "That thing I said in the room… You don't have to be embarrassed by it, you know."

I blinked in surprise.

"Because…" He slowly turned to me. "Truth is, I'm attracted to you, too."

My eyes went wide, and then, suddenly, I started laughing again.

"Maybe you've had a wee bit too much to drink after all", I teased him, but I couldn't help the slight blush on my cheeks.

"No", he whispered, and suddenly his face was only an inch from mine. It was even more handsome this close up. "I've had just enough." He stared deep into my eyes for a few seconds that seemed like eternity. My breath started speeding up slowly. His eyes were so beautiful; there was great talent and intelligence behind them, but right now, they spoke of only one thing: desire.

Suddenly his mouth was on mine. It didn't come as a surprise, oddly enough; I responded immediately, wrapping my arms around his neck and running them through his long, dark hair. I had never kissed anyone before, but it felt so natural that I didn't even think about it.

I felt his arms wrap around my waist tightly, pulling me as close as possible though we were sitting on different stools.

After an eternity that felt way too short, we broke away for air. I was panting, and his breath had sped up, too. Our faces were flushed as we stared at each other in awe.

"Let's get up to the room, shall we?" he suddenly whispered, his breath tickling my skin. "Where we can get some privacy."

I didn't even think about it. I only nodded.

_**XxXxX**_

**The next morning, 09:58**

I woke up, groaning. The sun was shining on my face, and that would have been nice if it wasn't for that terrible, terrible headache.

"Oh, man…" I muttered, sitting up and immediately regretting it. _Never _had I had a hangover this bad.

I glanced down at myself, just to get a shock. I was naked, I realized. Why the hell?

Suddenly I got the feeling that something was terribly wrong; like I knew I had done something really, really stupid.

My brain then registered the calm breaths that weren't mine, and the warmth of a body next to me. I whipped my head in that direction, just to see Neji lying there, deeply asleep. His attractive and muscular upper body was visible, but the rest was hidden by the blanket, thank goodness.

I stared at his handsome face that was surrounded by his now loose dark hair, and I felt horror growing in me. This was not good. Really, really not.

Very slowly, careful not to wake him up, I started moving. But, then, he moved too, in his sleep.

And put his arm around my waist.

My eyes went wide and my formerly pale face started burning.

"You idiot", I whispered, starting to panic. There was _no way_ I could get up now without him noticing.

So I just sat there, waiting.

After what felt like an eternity, although it was just a few minutes, he slowly started moving, and, then, after yet another moment, his eyes slowly opened. I could see him grimace; he probably had a headache, too.

Suddenly he stiffened. His eyes slowly started following his arm – the one around me – and then, once he saw where it was, he just stared for a moment.

Then he quickly looked up into my eyes.

We stared at each other for a moment, before he suddenly made an odd little sound and pulled his arm off me, moving back quickly and dragging the cover with him.

"Hey!" I yelled before he had time to pull it off me completely. I got up from the bed quickly, while holding on to my part of the cover so he didn't see anything… private… and he did the same. Thank god it was a big blanket.

We stood there, on either side of the bed, and stared at each other with horrified expressions.

"This…" I suddenly whispered. "This…! This is your fault!"

He widened his eyes. "_My_ fault? How is it _my _fault?"

"You were the one who seduced me!"

"I did not!"

"Well you kissed me!"

"You kissed me back!"

"You started it!"

"You should've ended it!"

"So now it's _my _fault!"

He was silent as he looked at me again for a while, and then he sighed, shaking his head. "No. It was both of our faults."

I nodded. That was reasonable.

"Soo…" I eventually asked after a moment. "Umm… What are we gonna do?"

He looked unsure. "Uuh… What do you want to do?"

I bit my lip. What _did _I want to do?

"Well…" I said, hesitating.

"Pretend this never happened?" he asked after a moment. I didn't quite know what that emotion in his voice was, but then I decided that that was the best solution.

"Yeah", I agreed. "That's probably the best thing to, uh, to do."

"Yeah, it is", he nodded. "We'll never talk about this."

"Yeah. Pretend it _never _happened and forget all about it."

"Right. It's not that big a deal."

"No, no big deal at all!"

"None at all."

There was another uncomfortable silence.

"Well, uh…" I eventually said. "Mind, um, turning your back for a second? So I can get my clothes?"

"Oh, right!" He quickly turned away from me, still shielding himself with the cover.

I ran over to grab some clothes real quick, and then I hurried into the bathroom, swearing mentally all the time.

'_Forget this? Easier said than done…'_

_**XxXxX**_

**And, **_**voilá. **_**Here was the prologue. It wasn't long, but it wasn't really supposed to be, either.**

**So, yesh. This story ain't gonna be that long, and pretty fluffy at some points. It's not that deep or anything; just something funny and cute. And problematic.**

**It's probably going to have a bit of the same kind of humor as **_**Roommates**_**, but not as, uh, innocent. ^^**

**Hope you enjoyed this, and please review so I know whether you want me to continue or not. I will, though, even if you wouldn't want me to! ^^**

**-M-B **


	2. And my life gets screwed over Permanent

**Heeere weee gooo! Next chapter. ^^ Thanks for the reviews!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the songs, movies, books, games etc that I might mention.**

Ch. 1: And my life gets screwed over. Permanently.

You know how you sometimes make a promise, but then it turns out there is _no way_ you will be able to keep it? I was put in that position.

Although, a broken promise to the idiot who did this to me was the least of my worries at the time…

_**XxXxX**_

"Hello, Tenten!" Lee greeted me energetically when I entered the training field.

"Hi", I replied, forcing a smile. I looked around the glade nervously, trying to find him. When I didn't, I turned back to Lee.

"Hey, where's Neji?" I asked.

"Right behind you", a smooth voice told me.

I let out an embarrassing little shriek and spun around, fist raised to hit him. He grabbed my arm before I could hurt him, and smirked.

"Calm down", he said. "You shouldn't be that jumpy; you're a shinobi."

I glared at him and tried to pull my arm out of his vice-like grip. I didn't do very well.

"Let _go_ of me", I told him between clenched teeth. "I am not in the mood."

His smirk grew wider, but he let my arm go and walked past me. "You're early today", he commented.

I didn't answer, just glared at his back. I didn't know whether it was my imagination, but ever since we'd come back from that stupid mission a month ago he had seemed like more of a jerk than he was usually. I couldn't understand _why the hell_ I had bugged him to talk more before; nowadays when he did I had a hard time not strangling him!

I'd tried once actually, but with his stupid muscular stupid strong stupid arms he'd stopped me. And then the idiot had _laughed _at me! I mean, how stupid is that?

Either way…

I huffed and crossed my arms over my chest, keeping my eyes fixed on his back. I really wondered how he'd react to the news… I kinda hoped he would freak. That way I would at least get one laugh out of this.

All I knew was that he wouldn't be exactly happy, though. I was even a little worried, if he'd flip out totally and do something I would regret… But then again, it is Neji Hyuuga, the stoic ice-queen, we're talking about. So I probably wouldn't have to worry about him getting violent.

And it was his fault either way.

"What are you just standing there for?" Neji asked me then, glancing over his shoulder at me. "Let's get started. We're wasting daylight."

I rolled my eyes at his wannabe-cool act, but pulled out a shuriken either way. Maybe exercising for a bit would make me feel better. Although I kind of doubted it.

**Four, five hours later**

I'd been right; it hadn't made me feel better. Actually, if possible, it had made me feel even worse.

I was lying on the ground, covered with scratches and bruises that would look _ugly_ tomorrow, panting harshly. My hair had gotten out of its buns and was tangled and messy, spread around me.

"What's wrong with you, Tenten?" Neji asked, and I could tell he was annoyed. "You're not focusing."

"You notice that after _five fucking hours_?" I hissed in response.

"I noticed it the moment I saw you", he retorted, glaring slightly at me. "I just thought you may get over it."

"And it took you _five fucking hours _to notice that I _won't_?" I hissed again. He was silent, so I decided to continue. "This is not a thing that some stupid training session would do anything about, expect make it _worse_! Hell, I sure wish it would help! If things were that simple, then _man _would life be amazing, but you see, they're _not_, and that is _entirely your fucking fault_!"

Neji looked at me for a while as if I'd gone crazy. I was sitting up now, glaring harshly at him. I wasn't even quite sure why exactly I was pissed; all I knew was that I sure as hell _was _pissed – so pissed that I was imagining how his nose would feel against my fist.

"TenTen, what's going on?" he asked then, sounding almost wary.

I got up from the ground and stormed over to him, grabbing him by the collar and pulling his face down so it was in the same height was mine.

"You want to know what's going on?" I hissed. "Do you? Well, I'll fucking tell you what's going on! I'm fucking pregnant, that's what's going on! And it's with your child!"

_**XxXxX**_

I was starting to get a bit worried. It had been almost half an hour and Neji hadn't said a word.

When I'd first told him he had just stared at me for like five minutes straight, and then he'd stumbled backwards against a tree that he was still leaning against, staring off into space. I had never seen him like this, ever, and I kind of freaked me out.

"Uh… Neji?" I asked carefully. "Are you, um… Are you alright?"

He looked at me then, his face blank as an empty white paper.

"Of course", he said after a few minutes of staring at me. "Why wouldn't I be? You're the one we should worry about. Pregnant, huh? Those morning sicknesses will probably be a bitch. Not to mention the mood swings and all that. Maybe we should ask Tsunade-sama what to do; she's the leading medical ninja after all. Talking about her, what are we going to do when you're too far along to be able to do any missions? Maybe she'll find you some paperwork or something. You need to get money some place. We can of course count on the money I'm getting in, but I can't be sure that'll be enough for both of us to survive. Maybe my uncle can help. And I'll try to get mostly A- and S-rank missions, to get more money."

I stared at him as he felt silent. A ranting Neji Hyuuga? I never thought I'd see the day.

"In case you're not getting an abortion, of course", he then continued after an awkward moment of silence. "But knowing you, you probably won't. So what _are _you going to do with the baby? Considering your age and all that maybe giving it to adoption or something would be for the best. But that's of course your choice. In case you're keeping it, we need to find a way to care for it then, too, and where are we going to leave it when we're both on missions? And do you want me to take care of it part time, or maybe we should start living together? When my uncle finds out he'll probably prefer us to get marri-"

That was it. When Neji Hyuuga not only starts ranting, but also the rant involves _marriage_, then it's time to shut him up.

So I slapped him. Hard.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed, coming back to his senses. I glared at him.

"Calm your ass down, freak!" I told him sternly, and he blinked at the weird line. "It's _way_ too soon to start thinking about that stuff. We have more immediate problems to face."

He looked at me for a moment, probably collecting his thoughts, before he finally spoke.

"As for example?" he asked, his voice calm on the surface, but I knew him well enough to hear the panic bubbling just underneath it.

I took a deep breath and slowly let it out, closing my eyes. This was what I had been meaning to actually tell him, and honestly, I was really nervous for his answer.

"Well, I don't know if it's exactly a _problem_", I said slowly. "But it's a, eh… dilemma. And no smart-assnes now", I quickly added when he opened his mouth to comment, probably to point out the fact that a dilemma _was _a problem. "I'm serious." I took another deep breath. "The thing is… You don't really have to be a part of this in any way."

He stared at me, completely silent and with a kind of blank face. I was pretty sure that was his version of "what do you mean?", so I decided to explain.

"This whole thing would be really hard on you if people would find out it's your child", I said, not quite able to meet his eyes for some reason, so I focused on the ground next to him. "I mean, with your uncle and all. You're having a hard enough time as it is, what with the arguments within the Hyuugas about the branch-family and all that… If this came out, that would most probably mean things would never change concerning that. We both know how uptight those elders can be." I said the last part in an attempt to lighten up the mood, but it didn't really work out quite as well as I'd hoped. I coughed and continued.

"So what I'm saying is… You don't have to have any part in this at all", I clarified. "It really is enough if one of us suffers, I don't need to drag you down with me. I don't even have to worry about telling any parents or anything, and even if Tsunade-sama can't get me any paperwork for the time I'm pregnant I could always be a… waitress or something. I'll be fine on my own, I'm sure."

He looked at me for a while before he slowly opened his mouth. "…Who would you say the father is, if someone asked?" he said silently.

I shrugged and tried to smile, but all I managed was a pathetic twitch of my lips. "I'll just tell them I hooked up with some guy in the bar and we happened to forget protection", I said, fighting hard not have my voice break. "After all, that would be true." I made a pathetic attempt at a grin.

I knew he was going to take me up on the offer. It was obvious, and honestly, I couldn't blame him. He would be totally screwed if someone found out. I couldn't ask him to mess up his entire life just because of one mistake, even if the very thing happened to me. I was very well aware of the fact that, if I kept the baby – which I probably would; I just couldn't picture myself giving up a child – I maybe wouldn't be able to continue my life as a ninja, since a single mother working as a shinobi would be close to impossible.

Maybe it was stupid… But I wouldn't – _couldn't_ – force anyone to go through what I was, even if – from a certain point of view – it was their responsibility.

I still was upset, though. I had been hoping he would decline the offer and tell me that there was no way he could abandon me like that. It was a faint hope and I had been beating myself up over thinking it, but it had still slipped into my mind and etched itself in there.

"So", I said then after a while. "…What are you going to do?"

Neji looked at me for a few minutes, and the expression on his face was almost pained, as if he was making the hardest decision of his life.

Eventually he opened his mouth.

"Are you…" he began, fell silent, and tried again. "Are you sure you would manage on your own?"

The words hit me like a hard punch in the stomach, but I didn't let it show. Instead I finally managed to pull off a smile.

"Of course. I'm a shinobi, after all." I grinned widely, and somehow it helped me keep the tears from my eyes.

He looked down at the ground before he spoke. Apparently he wasn't able to look me in the eyes. "If… if that really is the case…" he said. "And… and if it's alright that I… keep out of this…" He looked up at me then, and now his face was truly pained. "…It would make my life a _lot_ easier."

I tried to swallow the lump in my throat as I stared into his beautiful, troubled eyes, but didn't quite manage. So I stood up instead and smiled as confidently as I could.

"That's settled, then", I said, my voice shaking ever so slightly. I prayed to all the gods I knew that he didn't notice it, or the tears that appeared in my eyes as I turned to walk away.

"…TenTen!" he called after me. I stopped walking, but didn't say anything in fear that my voice would break. He continued speaking softly. "If you need any help… Don't hesitate to ask."

I nodded and hoped he saw it though my back was to him, and then I hurried away from there as fast as I could without running.

**XxXxX**

It was almost midnight. I was sitting on my bed, my arms wrapped tightly around a pillow. I probably looked like a mess, despite the long, hot shower I took when I got home in hope that it would make me feel better (which it didn't, by the way). I knew my eyes were red and swollen, and my face was probably pale. My hair was a mess because I hadn't had the energy to comb through it after the shower, and I'd been pulling at it – something I always did when I tried to stop crying and didn't manage.

For the last three hours I'd been trying to sleep, but that's close to an impossibility when you're sobbing so bad it's hard to even breathe. And the fact that I felt like an idiot for crying didn't exactly make the whole thing any better.

Right now I'd stopped crying – it felt like I didn't have any tears left to spill – so I was just sitting on my bed and staring out into the darkness through my window. I really liked that window. It was huge and on the opposite side of the room from my bed, so I could easily see through it. The view was pretty, too – I could see the entire village, since I lived on a hill just outside of it – but now I wasn't quite able to enjoy it. I wouldn't even have been able to see anything if it wasn't for the lights of the village.

I closed my eyes again after a moment, burying my face in the drenched pillow. All the crying had made me tired, and I felt like maybe I could finally get some sleep.

After a while I drifted off into a restless half-slumber, my head falling down onto the pillow. It felt good although it was just a shallow sleep, and I felt myself relax.

I started dreaming then. It wasn't a pleasant dream. I was running through the forest where our training ground was, although it was much darker and spookier now, and I was holding something in my arms. It was a baby, a sleeping, pale baby with a beautiful face and chocolate brown hair.  
I was searching for something. Or someone, I wasn't all that sure. All I knew was that I needed it desperately. My lungs were burning and my legs were hurting, but that was of course just an illusion, since I was dreaming.  
Suddenly someone stepped out from back a tree. It was Sakura Haruno, that girl from Naruto's team.  
_"TenTen"_, she said, knocking on the tree next to her. _"TenTen, wake up!"_

I opened my eyes wide, staring up into the ceiling. I was sweating, even though the dream hadn't even been particularly scary. It was just that weird, desperate feeling I'd had…

I shivered, closing my eyes. For some reason Sakura's voice was still ringing in my head. Although it sounded kind of weird, when I thought about it… Much deeper, and somehow more real than it should…

"TenTen, goddammit, _wake up_!"

I blinked. Then I sighed, cursed my own stupidity and got off the bed in a quick motion, hurrying towards the bedroom door.

I jumped over the steps – there were like, five, six of them so it wasn't long – and into the living room/kitchen, and from there over to the door. Whoever was standing there had apparently heard my approach, since they had stopped knocking. They hadn't left, though, since I could see the shadow through the window in the door.

I opened the door, and stood face to face with Neji. For some reason I wasn't surprised.

"Yeah?" I asked, blinking and looking at him quizzically.

He looked really nervous for some reason. He tried to cover it, but wasn't doing a very good job.

"I've been thinking", he said immediately, not looking me in the eyes. Wow, he was doing a _really_ bad job at covering the anxiousness up. Usually he was all cool and calm, and now all of a sudden he was acting like his cousin.

"Uh-huh", I said when he didn't continue. "And how did that feel?" He gave me an annoyed look, as if now wasn't the time to joke, and then suddenly he walked into my apartment and started pacing around the living room.

"All Hyuuga-children have the Byakugan", he stated all of a sudden, not looking at me. "If one of the parents is a Hyuuga, the child gets the Byakugan, no matter who the other parent is. There has never been anyone who hasn't gotten the gift. So we can be pretty sure also our child will have the Byakugan, and therefore it will be obvious to everyone that the father is a Hyuuga. And since I'm your teammate, and we spent that one night in the same room, everyone will correctly assume that I am the father."

"…What are you trying to say?" I wondered. I was honestly getting a bit worried. He wasn't going to ask me to somehow get rid of the child, was he? Well, if he was he'd get some serious fist in his face. I'd already given up pretty damn much for him; I wasn't going to kill my child on top of it all.

He took a deep breath and turned to me, a serious look on his face.

"I'm saying", he explained slowly, "that since everyone is going to realize I'm the father anyway… there's no use lying about it in the first place."

I blinked and looked at him in surprise. "…Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

He raised an eyebrow, calmer now that he had gotten it out. "Depends on what you think I'm saying."

Suddenly there was a wide smile on my face. In the fraction of a second I'd jumped on him and we were lying on the floor, me hugging the living daylight out of him.

"You're gonna be a _daddy_!" I sang, squeezing him tightly. He was turning kind of blue, so I lightened the grip slightly so he could get some air, but I was still hugging him.

"Guess so", he said, apparently feeling a bit uncomfortable. I understood that, since I was dressed in only a t-shirt and underwear, but I was too happy to care at the moment. He wasn't going to abandon me after all!

After a moment I rolled off him, but didn't get up. We both just lied on the floor, looking up at the ceiling silently. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence, though, for the first time in ages. It felt nice.

I felt ecstatic. It felt like I didn't have to worry about anything now that I had him by my side, even though I knew that there was a lot to be taken care of, and things would be really hard even with him. But I didn't bother caring right now.

"…What happened to 'I'll be fine on my own'?" Neji suddenly asked. I blinked in surprise.

"Huh?"

He turned his face to me, smirking. "Wasn't it you who assured me that you wouldn't need me for this at all?" he teased. "And here you are, acting like I saved your life by taking over the role as a father. So much for the strong, independent woman you pretend to be."

I gave him a deadly glare then, but he just chuckled.

"Don't mess with the pregnant woman", I said darkly. "My hormones are stirring. Who knows what I might do when I get really pissed? I don't think you'd be too eager to know."

His lips twitched slightly, but my words had to have some effect, since he didn't comment further.

"But what are we going to do now?" he then asked. "Are you going to speak to Tsunade-sama anytime soon?"

I sighed. "Might as well go tomorrow. Just to get it over with. I hope she doesn't fire me or anything, though."

He snorted. "I really think not. You're too valuable for that."

I smiled and looked at him again. "That has got to be the nicest thing you ever said to me", I stated.

"Probably", he agreed. "But either way, I better get going now. Hiashi-sama will wonder where I am."

"Okay", I sighed and got up from the floor at the same time as he did. "Goodnight."

"See you tomorrow at the training grounds", he replied. "I'll come with you to Tsunade-sama."

"Okay", I said with a smile.

"Goodnight", he stated and exited the apartment.

I came over to the door and watched him walk down the path leading away from my small, homey garden. He looked good in the moonlight, I noted.

Suddenly some weird instinct took over me, and I called after him.

"Neji!"

He turned and looked at me as I hurried after him, stopping right in front of him.

"What?" he asked.

I didn't think it over at all; I just stood up on the tips of my toes and pecked him on the lips, very lightly. We barely touched each other, but there was still something very special about the kiss.

I pulled away from him with a slight smile and a very rosy pair of cheeks. "Thanks, Neji", I whispered, and then I turned and hurried back into my apartment.

**XxXxX**

If you think things were all done and well by this, you are _wrong_. As we already discussed with Neji, there was the matter of his family. And telling Tsunade was going to be a complete chapter for itself. You have no idea how nervous I was, it was just plain _hell_.

And Neji was doing his best to be a good soon-to-be father, but it just didn't come that naturally. And my hormones are soon starting to go crazy, which may be amusing to hear about, but less than amusing to experience. Although Neji always keeps whining about how hard it was on him, I'm still thinking that it was _much _harder on me, since he was just so plain annoying you wouldn't believe.

But you'll hear more about that later on…

**XxXxX**

**Okay, I'm sorry to disappoint you guys, but the chapters to this story are probably all going to be pretty short. **** It's kind of just a "for fun" story, and not a "serious" story, like Roommates (and now I'm not saying the content of that one was serious, I'm just saying it was bigger deal, in a way). But I really hope you enjoyed this, and please, **_**please **_**review!**

**Thank you for reading, my darlings!**

**Metal-Blondie**


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